Patients with Cystic Fibrosis Are Living Longer — Physician’s First Watch

Patients with Cystic Fibrosis Are Living Longer

Survival among patients with cystic fibrosis significantly improved between 2000 and 2010, according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Researchers studied a cohort of roughly 30,000 patients with cystic fibrosis. Survival improved by 1.8% annually between 2000 and 2010. Children born and diagnosed with the disease in 2010 can be expected to live a median of 39 years if the survival rate does not change. But if survival continues to improve at the current rate, then those patients should live a median of 56 years.

The authors and editorialists say these estimates are probably conservative because of new cystic fibrosis therapies and universal newborn screening implemented throughout the U.S. by 2009. In addition, they remind clinicians to be aware of potential comorbid conditions — such as depression, colon cancer, chronic renal insufficiency, and hypertriglyceridemia — as patients live longer with cystic fibrosis.

This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Vertical Tabs

* Required

Reader comments are intended to encourage lively discussion of clinical topics with your peers in the medical community. We ask that you keep your remarks to a reasonable length, and we reserve the right to withhold publication of remarks that do not meet this standard.

PRIVACY: We will not use your email address, submitted for a comment, for any other purpose nor sell, rent, or share your e-mail address with any third parties. Please see our Privacy Policy.